Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao can be described in three words:
- The man, who refuses to surrender to poverty.
- The man, who uses great confidence in God as key weapons in the success.
- The man, who may eventually become a prominent politician and businessman.
The man who refuses to surrender to poverty.
“When I am in the ring I am also fighting for my people. I want to make my country proud and make my fans happy. It is very important to me because my country is important to me. That is why I must win.”
- Manny Pacquiao, on his Philippino heritage.
Growing Up
Emmanuel Dapigran Pacquiao was born December 17, 1978, in Bukidnon, Midanao, Philippines. The second of four children, he became the man of the house shortly after his father left the family while Manny Pacquiao was still in grade school. Faced with few other options, Manny Pacquiao entered the workforce: At first he sold bread in local neighborhoods and later he engaged in street fighting for small purses.
Living in Manila, away from home for the first time and 15 years old, Manny Pacquiao worked in construction during the day and trained ferociously at night. The combination of those two activities transformed him into a sleek, fighting machine. One year later, in 1995, Manny Pacquiao began boxing professionally at a slender 106 pounds.
On His Fighting Record
He is the former WBC lightweight world champion, WBC super featherweight world champion, IBF super bantamweight world champion, and WBC flyweight world champion. He is currently the IBO and Ring Magazine light welterweight champion, and is rated by Ring Magazine as the #1 pound-for-pound boxer in the world.
He has also held the Ring Magazine titles for featherweight and super featherweight divisions. For his achievements, Pacquiao became the first Filipino and Asian boxer to win five world titles in five different weight divisions. In addition, he is the first boxer to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes. Aside from being a boxer, Pacquiao has participated in politics, acting, filmmaking, and music recording.
Watching him fight is absolutely beautiful.
